Their lips were barely an inch apart when Sage stopped moving. "Kidding." He chuckled. "Hindi kita pwedeng sanayin sa mga halik ko."

Pumikit si Ken at huminga nang malalim para mapigilan ang sarili niyang sampalin ang lalaki sa harap niya. Marahan niyang itinulak palayo si Sage pero sa matigas na abs siya napahawak. Nilipat niya 'agad ang kanyang mga kamay para sa braso na lang itulak ang binata pero sa toned triceps naman siya napahawak. A blush crept on her face as she let go of his arms.

"Ano bang kailangan mo?" She finally agreed to help him out para matigil na ang kahibangang ito. Baka masira na kasi ang ribcage niya sa lakas ng tibok ng puso niya matapos ang ginawa ni Sage.

His dimples showed as a wide grin appeared on his face. Nainis si Ken dahil walang anumang bakas ng pagkailang kay Sage. Halatang sanay na sanay na itong manlinlang ng mga babae.

"Claire will be bidding for a certain piece of art at the charity auction later. Kailangan mo lang taasan ang bid niya," Sage said.

"What the hell? Bakit mo naman siya pipigilang bumili ng painting? Isa pa, wala akong pambayad."

"Hindi 'yon painting. Akong bahala sa pambayad. Just outbid her, the price is not an issue. You also don't need to claim the art piece in the event that you win, baka gusto ni Lily," Sage said.

"Wait, ba't 'di na lang ikaw ang mag-bid?"

Sage's phone beeped and he quickly glanced at the screen. "No time to explain, I have to go. Basta, please, huwag mo siyang hahayaang manalo. And you might want to bid anonymously."

She watched him jog back to the direction of the auditorium. Sage was being very shady but it ignited her curiosity.

Ken checked her phone but there was no update from Lily so she just returned to the auditorium. Umupo siya sa pinakagilid sa likod at naglagay ng tissue packet sa katabi niyang upuan para i-reserve si Lily.

Matapos ang ilang minuto, umakyat sa stage ang kapatid ni Sage. "Good evening to all!" Teri said as she stepped on the podium. "Thank you so much for taking your time to attend Minerva International School's seventy-fifth alumni homecoming. As you all know, the charity auction is held every year. We usually auction off artwork of some very talented alumni but this year, the committee decided to put a twist in the auction. Of course, we'll still be giving the proceeds to the chosen charitable organizations but instead of bidding for art pieces, we will be conducting a charity date auction!"

The curtains rose to reveal ten ridiculously handsome guys at syempre, isa doon si Sage. At that moment, everything he was being shady about became clear. Claire was obviously going to bid for Sage and she was supposed to keep her from winning. And she was definitely going to be an anonymous bidder.

To be frank, if Ken wanted to make Sage's life a little more difficult, this was a perfect opportunity. Simple lang lang kailangan niya gawin—huwag mag-bid at hayaang manalo si Claire. He'd be obligated to go on a date with his ex, they'd be headlines of entertainment news, he'd have less time to bother Lily, and maybe he'll get back together with Claire... For some reason that made her stomach drop.

Sige na nga, mag-bi-bid na 'ko.

* * *

Squeals of excitement were heard from the audience after Teri's announcement. Standing between Tristan and Valerian, Sage flashed his brightest smile to the audience.

"Alam ko kung bakit ako binubugaw ng kapatid ko eh pero how the hell did you two end up here?" he asked the two guys beside him through gritted teeth.

"I don't even want to talk about how she tricked me into doing this," Valerian responded.

"Your sister is very cunning," matipid na sagot ni Tristan. His attention returned to his sister on the podium. May powers talaga si Teri.

"Everyone will be provided with a tablet that has the auction app. Please use it to input your bids. Of course, you may also bid anonymously. The top five bid prices and the bidders will be displayed on the screen," Teri instructed as she pointed to a large LED screen on one side of the stage. "First up is the captain of our country's football team, Lance Tristan Xavier Galvez. You may start placing your bids now." Teri left the stage and was replaced by another member of the homecoming committee who was assigned to be the auctioneer.

Umalis na rin sa stage ang mga lalaking kasali maliban kay Tristan. 20K ang starting bid pero mabilis itong umakyat papuntang 500K. Kita sa screen na tatlo na lang ang naglalaban para makuha si Tristan bilang ka-date.

Hinanap ni Sage sa audience si Ken. Siguradong kay Claire ang bagsak niya kung naisipan nitong umatras sa deal nila. He finally spotted her sitting on the last row, busy with the tablet. Was she also bidding for Tristan?

The date with Tristan was finally sold to an anonymous bidder for 820K. Ken looked up from the tablet and when she met his eyes, she gave him her signature eye-roll.

* * *

Ken saw Sage glaring at her when she looked up from the tablet. Kung sino pa ang humingi ng pabor, yon pa ang masama ang tingin? The audacity of this airbending fuckboy! He deserved the eye-roll.

She was again tempted to break the agreement and leave him to deal with his ex pero nakita niya si Claire sa 'di kalayuan. The smug grin on the face of the celebrity brought back memories of her high school days. Matagal na kasing bulok ang ugali ng babaeng 'yon. She was lucky enough to have never been classmates with this two-faced bitch but some of her friends have been relentlessly bullied by Claire. Kaya kahit ayaw niyang tulungan si Sage, mag-bi-bid siya para lang hindi magwagi si Claire.

Nagsimula na ang bidding para kay Sage. Tulad ni Tristan, 20K rin ang naging starting bid para kay Sage pero mas maraming sumali sa auction. Kahit sina Jean at Trish, na pinagmamalaki kanina ang mga boyfriend nila, kasama sa top five bidders. 'Di man lang nag-anonymous.

Matapos ang ilang minuto, unti-unting sumuko ang mga bidder hanggang si Ken, na isang anonymous bidder, at si Claire na lang ang natira. Napangiti siya nang makita ang iritadong hitsura ni Claire. Mukhang may gusto itong sabunutan pero hindi nito alam kung sino.

Malapit si Ken sa main door ng auditorium kaya agad siyang napatingin nang bumukas ito. A lady in her sixties entered, looking regal in a mermaid gown.

Ken's eyes grew wide when she realized who the newcomer was. She totally forgot that the older woman was also an alumna. Nawala ang ngiti niya. Agad siyang yumuko para matakpan ang mukha niya ng kanyang buhok. 

The last bid was 830K Claire. Ken quickly inputted 850K. Though she wanted to ensure Claire's loss, she didn't want to risk getting recognized by the newcomer. As soon as the lady started walking down the aisle towards the middle of the room to take a seat, Ken sneaked out of the auditorium using a side door. Mag-so-sorry na lang siya kay Sage kung si Claire man ang manalo. And maybe he can just claim—nope! Napailing si Ken. She should stop thinking about that.

* * *

Nakita ni Sage si Ken na nagmamadaling lumabas matapos nitong maglagay ng bid. Her right hand was running through her hair while she was biting the nails on her left hand. She was clearly distressed about something and Sage had the urge to just ditch the auction and run after her.

Pero hindi niya pwedeng gawin 'yon. God knows what will happen to him if he doesn't fulfill his side of his deal with Teri.

Unfortunately for Sage, Claire placed a higher bid at 900K. Ken had already left so no one was challenging the latest bid.

"Going," the auctioneer said, signalling that the date with Sage was about to be sold.

Bumukas ang main door ng auditorium. Lily entered, looking troubled but she didn't pay attention to the ongoing auction.

"Going," pag-ulit ng auctioneer. At this point, tanggap na ni Sage na kailangan niyang tiising makasama si Claire sa isang date. Inisip niya na lang na sa charity mapupunta ang malilikom na pera para hindi siya tuluyang maiyak.

"Two million pesos!"

Napatingin ang lahat sa babaeng sumigaw ng bid na lampas pa sa doble ng last bid. She had just entered the auditorium, right behind Lily.

Naglakad ito palapit sa stage. "Sorry, I wasn't able to place my bid using the app. Kakarating ko lang kasi at halos patapos na ang bidding para sa inaabangan ko," she said, smiling.

The auctioneer nodded. "Does anyone want to place a bid higher than two million pesos?" she asked the audience.

"Going," the auctioner said, after no new bids were placed.

"Going," she repeated but even Claire did not want to donate that much to charity.

"Gone!" The auctioneer officially closed the bidding for a date with Sage. Alam ni Sage at hindi niya kailanman itatanggi na pinagpala talaga siya pagdating sa kagwapuhan pero nagulat pa rin siyang may handang magbayad ng dalawang milyong piso para lang i-date niya.

'Di niya kilala ang babaeng nanalo pero nagpasalamat siyang hindi 'yon si Claire. But knowing the girl he was going on a date with can wait. Mas importanteng mahanap si Kendra.